A/N: Here it is ... the final rewritten version of this story. It probably feels like I've jerked you guys around a lot. This story just means a lot to me and I've finally FINALLY figured out some idea of a plot, so I had to rewrite the first 2 chapters to fit, otherwise there'd be some huge plot holes. Thank you for being patient with me. I hope that this final version is the best version I can give to you guys.

Don't forget to review/comment, subscribe to alerts, and favorite this story! Thank you so much!

(And as always, the characters/plot of Naruto do not belong to me! This is just a fanfiction I've created out of my love for this series.)

Aika, a second year Konoha High student who looked like she still belonged in Konoha Junior High down the street, took up the sixth and final seat at one of the circular outside tables for lunch, quietly greeting the group of seniors there. Four others - Izumo, Kurenai, Hayate, and Kotetsu - returned her greeting but the fifth was concentrating on fishing out a piece of tofu from his soup with disposable chopsticks. When Aika sat down next to him, he glanced up and dropped the piece back into the broth, splashing himself in the face.

"Ah! Aika-chan!" Iruka sputtered, setting his bowl down and reaching for a napkin to wipe his chin. "What are you doing here? I thought you were sitting over there already." He motioned towards another table where six others were sitting - including a brunette girl whose face was turned away. The other girl turned and he saw that it wasn't a girl - it was Genma, who had similar shoulder-length, dark brown hair as Aika. Blushing hotly he muttered, "I-I meant over there," and pointed towards a different table. Everyone turned to look and saw that the only person sitting there was another boy.

"Jeez, Iruka, I didn't think she looked that much like a boy," Kotetsu said teasingly.

"Nevermind!" Iruka replied, hiding his face behind his milk carton. "I was mistaken!"

"Hey guys," came a serious voice behind them. The group turned to see Anko, a tomboyish and outspoken girl with dark hair pulled into a wild bun, passing by. She offered them a playful smirk to the boys of the table before moving on to an empty seat across the cement patio.

"Did you see that?" Izumo said, turning to smack Kotetsu square in the chest. "She looked at me!"

"She looked at me," Kotetsu replied, hitting Izumo in the stomach.

"Actually," Kurenai cut in, her voice soft but commanding, "I think she was looking at Iruka."

"Wh-What? No she wasn't! I mean - she may have been. But we're in different classes. Besides, we haven't really talked much since … what? Middle school? Why would she -?"

Izumo and Kotetsu exchanged looks before picking up the small bowls of mixed veggies and scooping it onto their rice.

"I'm only teasing, Iruka," Kurenai said, throwing a glance at the boy beside her. "We all know what class she's in. I'm sure she's just trying to get a rise out of one of you, catch you off guard. You shouldn't fall for it, not with our next competition so close. Also, Iruka, did you have notes on today's lesson?"

"Oh, yes!" Iruka replied, grateful for the shift in conversation. "I have them in my bag. I can give them to you after school."

"That would be wonderful, thank you."

"Do you think I could borrow them too?" Hayate asked, raising his clenched fist to his mouth and coughing violently. His shoulders shook and his lungs seemed to rattle when he took a slow breath.

"O-Of course. I can copy them if you want …"

"Hey - what's this talk about copying? You guys aren't cheating are you?"

The six of them turned to see one of the Year Four teachers, Jiraiya, standing over them. His mouth was pointed in a frown but they could tell he was joking. He eyed them suspiciously and pointed a finger at Iruka who shrunk back, his milk carton still in his hands.

"You're the last person I would expect to be cheating! But I guess every student has their weakness. I'm surprised it's you two that are the ones taking his notes too," Jiraiya continued, looking at Hayate and Kurenai in turn. "I thought for sure you two would be the ones to understand my teachings! I mean, there are a few other kids in this class I could understand cheating …" He glanced around the outdoor seating and frowned genuinely this time. "There are so many … Oh! I'm sorry." Jiraiya crossed his arms and looked at Aika who was hidden on the left side of Iruka, unsure of what was happening. "I didn't mean to be rude. You're not in my class. How do you know my lovely students?"

Before she could even open her mouth to answer, he made a face and said, "Wait, are you Iruka's younger sister?"

Iruka whipped around, wide-eyed and sputtered, "N-No! She's not my sister! Why would you think that!"

"Jeez kid, lighten up - you look like you could be related. Cousins? Distantly? You've both got pretty dark hair and you're both pretty tan, compared to most of these other kids."

"She's lighter than me," Iruka noted, staring at the back of his hands for reference. "And - And we don't look that similar! We're not related. You shouldn't say stuff like that, you could start a rumor!"

"What? A rumor that you're related?" Jiraiya deadpanned and the corner of his thin lip twitched, "Is that such a bad thing? It's pretty harmless. I mean, there are plenty of worse things you could be upset about. Besides, she looks like a nice kid. You should take it as a compliment." Jiraiya looked over Iruka's head at the girl. "What say you?"

Blushing slightly, Aika sat up and gave an awkward smile to the teacher. "No, I'm not related to him. I actually don't have any siblings. And I don't really have any cousins that live here. I walk home the same way as all of them, though, so I see them almost every day after school. Plus Hayate and I live really close to each other! We grew up in the same neighborhood."

"Really? That's nice." Jiraiya paused, surveying the group, and then raised a hand to his mouth in order to mimic whispering. "Tell me, who's your favorite? You have to have a favorite, right? I won't tell them. Personally, I think Izumo and Kotetsu are really annoying -"

"We know you do," Kotetsu interrupted.

"We think you're annoying too," Izumo added.

"- but they don't know that. You don't have to choose a favorite from this group. Do you know any of my other students?"

Aika looked around the open patio and spotted a few other kids she knew who were the same age as the group she sat with - Anko, Genma and Raidou were a few of them. When she turned away, both Izumo and Kotetsu let out sounds that sounded like their feelings had been hurt.

Aika had seen Anko, Genma and Raidou on her walks home from school as well, but she hadn't talked to any of them much other than the one time during her first year at Konoha High when she'd faceplanted on the front steps and accidentally vaulted her book bag over the side railing, down into the bushes. Genma had been walking behind her, talking with his friend Raidou, and they both tripped over her and fell over. Raidou ended up rolling down the steps and Genma was halfway between amused and annoyed at the whole situation since he suffered a scraped chin and bruised palms. But he helped Aika stand up and told her, "It's okay, we all trip over ourselves sometimes. Just don't do it again." Anko was passing by when she saw the whole thing and helped pick up Aika's scattered papers and returned the book bag to her. The first year was so flustered and horrified that she decided she could never speak to those three ever again, even if they had been kind to her. But she had the feeling that every time they saw her, they only imagined a huge neon sign pointing down at her saying KLUTZ! Judging from the conversation she'd been hearing, those three weren't in Jiraiya's class so she didn't mention them.

There was one more kid she knew shared the same grade as the others, but she didn't know if Jiraiya was his teacher or not. Her cheeks turned a rosy shade of pink at the thought of him and she shook her head.

"J-Just a few!" she replied, realizing she looked quite silly saying nothing. "I couldn't choose favorites … That's not very nice!"

"So what? I have a favorite," Jiraiya responded evenly, looking a bit proud of himself.

"What? Who?" Kotetsu asked, puzzled. "Should you even be telling us this?"

"You're right - I shouldn't. But I'll give you a hint - it's none of you!" He laughed boisterously and turned to leave, his shoulders shaking in amusement at his own joke. Suddenly he wheeled around again, startling the group. "Wait - I never got your name! What is it?"

"Huh? Oh! It's Aika - Kinomura Aika."

"Kinomura, huh? What grade are you in, Kinomura-san?"

"I'm a second year student."

"Just a second year? I know a few of the second years around here. Do you know that one kid - what's his name? The kinda weird one with the eyes."

"Uh - Gaara-kun?"

"Yeah! Him! What do you think about him?"

"He's …" She paused to look at the expressions of everyone around her. She gave a quick, breathy laugh and said, "He's very nice to me. I mean, he's … well he's not mean. Why do you ask?"

"With my luck, I'll have his siblings next year and him the year after that. I'm just wondering what I can expect from him. He's very quiet."

"Y-Yes, he is. But I don't think it's because - er, well, I suppose everyone has a reason for being the way they are. Some people are quiet. Uhm … but he's a good student."

"Huh … did Hiruzen-sensei tell you that? I mean, the whole thing about everyone has a reason for being the way they are. Did you learn that from him?"

"Ah, yes! How did you know?"

Jiraiya smiled knowingly and shrugged. "I've been a teacher here for a while now. I know just about every teaching method there is - and I was once a student, too. I won't admit how long ago because that'll give away my age - and if I give away my age, I give away Lady Tsunade's age too and she'd kill me! But let's just say once upon a time, I was given the exact same speech by Hiruzen-sensei. I think we all were … Anyway, I've got to get back to the classroom before lunch is over. I'll see you around!" He strutted off, his white hair swaying carelessly behind him.

There was a silence at the table as everyone poked at their food. Aika pushed a piece of chicken into her bowl of rice with her chopsticks, pursing her lips. "He seemed nice," she said, not sure what else she should be saying. The silence seemed awkward and unnecessary.

"Yeah, nice enough when we aren't in the middle of a competition," Izumo retorted. He jabbed a finger toward the table across the patio and said, "You see those kids over there? Anko, Asuma, Genma and Raidou? They're part of Lady Tsunade's class."

"Uhm … okay. Is that bad?" Aika asked, looking over towards the table.

"Well, you see …" Kotetsu said slowly, "Lady Tsunade and Jiraiya-sensei have a kind of long-standing rivalry. They each try to get their students to have the best grades on tests, best performances in sports, best looking too … They don't want us really talking to kids from each other's class, so that's why we're all sitting at different tables."

"But that girl - Anko - she said hi to you guys."

"Yeah, but you remember what Kurenai said? She was trying to unsettle us, get us off our game. We have a class competition coming up soon. If we're distracted even a little bit, they'll pummel us."

"But we're pretty used to their antics by now," Izumo said. "I mean, it's been going on since before we were put into these classes. It's not super out of character for her to say hi to us, but now there's ulterior motives behind it."

"Not that I minded -" Kotetsu began.

Izumo huffed, "As if she'd go for someone like you."

"I think I have a better chance than you do. Look at your hair."

"What's wrong with my hair?"

"Can you even see out of that one eye? What are you trying to block out? Your bad sense of fashion? Your past decisions? Maybe it's so you don't have to look at yourself in the mirror every morning. If only you'd spare us from having to look at you."

"Hardy har har, you're so funny."

"Also," Kotetsu ignored his friend and motioned towards a student with a silky bowl cut and thick eyebrows, "that's Gai. He's in our class - that's why he's not sitting with the others, like Anko and everyone."

"He looks so alone!" Aika cried, seeing that Gai was by himself. "Did I take his seat? I didn't mean to!"

"Oh, don't worry about him," Kurenai cut in. "He likes to sit alone to study and, well, I guess to try to be the best. But he'll join us sometime later."

"That's not the thing, though," Kotetsu said. "Gai is in our class, but Lady Tsunade has a kid in her class and he and Gai have it out for each other!"

"Gai calls him his 'eternal rival'," Izumo said, rolling his eyes. "They're always doing dumb competitions, seeing who is better. This means that our classes are even more competitive than usual. Not only are Lady Tsunade and Jiraiya-sensei at each other's throats, but so are some of their students! It can get pretty ugly."

"I'm surprised Hayate hasn't told you any of this," Kotetsu said. "Aren't you supposed to be best friends?"

Hayate shrugged as he coughed again. "It's never come up in conversation. I thought it would bore her."

"What do you guys talk about?" Izumo asked. "Or does Hayate just cough the entire time you're together and you just interpret it?"

"She's very good at it," Hayate said, taking a large swig of his tea. "She's had so many years of practice. It's a miracle she can understand your gibberish, Izumo."

"What is this? Pick On Izumo Day? I thought I hated myself enough for all of us."

"Since you've already befriended us," Hayate said through more coughs, "and you've met with Jiraiya-sensei, it'd be best to stay away from Lady Tsunade and her class."

"Unless you want to unleash the true fury of Lady Tsunade," Kotetsu warned. "Or of Jiraiya-sensei. Someone or another will probably accuse you of being a 'spy' if you befriend both classes."

"What!" Aika exclaimed, looking bewilderedly at each student in turn. "So I can't talk to anyone from Lady Tsunade's class? How - How do I even know who all of them are? I've already met a few of them! I met them before I met most of you guys! I mean, not that I talk to them, but …"

"Just to be on the safe side, maybe you should only talk to us," Izumo said, though his tone gave away the fact that he was joking. "Tell you what - there is someone you personally probably don't wanna mess around with, and he also happens to be in Lady Tsunade's class."

"Huh? Who?"

Izumo glanced over towards Gai's table. Everyone's gaze shifted too and they saw Gai leap to his feet and point exuberantly at the boy passing by his table: a stone-faced, silver-haired student who looked absolutely bored.

"Hatake Kakashi."

Aika's face flushed red and she looked down at her tray. Her worries had been confirmed, he was part of Tsunade's class. That meant she couldn't talk to him according to everyone she'd spoken to today. But why 'her personally'?

"K-Kakashi-san? But I sometimes see him too when I walk home! And I've spoken to him a - a few times. Am I supposed to ignore him? What's so bad about him?"

"He's a jerk," Izumo said, sounding far angrier than was necessary. "Even if he wasn't part of Lady Tsunade's class, we'd tell you to ignore him! He's not a good friend - he's not even a good person."

"Izumo," Kurenai said gently, reaching out across the table but he pulled away and folded his arms.

"It's true and you know it. He hasn't been the same since …" Izumo's eyes flickered to Iruka and both boys looked away. "He's just not a nice person, okay? And you … you're way nice. Sometimes too nice. Don't bother with someone like him. Just … Just settle for someone like Hayate."

"Settle? Thanks." Hayate looked unimpressed with the compliment. "I think I'm quite the catch."

"The only thing she'd catch with you is a permanent cold," Kotetsu muttered. "You know what, Kinomura-chan? Don't catch feelings at all. Dating is the worst thing you can do for your health."

"Imagine Hayate," Izumo stressed, turning his attention to his classmate whose face had somehow conveyed even less amusement, "if he was dating. He'd be dead right off the bat. Someone that sick couldn't make it to a week anniversary. In fact, the reason he's so sick is because of how much he's dated. He used to be wild back in the day, and it's taken such a toll on his health. Look at him. How pathetic."

"I - I've known him all these years," Aika protested, sitting forward, "he hasn't dated anyone!"

"That you know of," Kotetsu pointed out. "Even Hayate has his secrets. Everyone does. I do, Izumo does, I know Kurenai definitely has secrets -"

"Watch it, Hagane."

"- and we all know Iruka has loads of secre-"

Iruka huffed and set his chopsticks down on his tray. "I think I'm going to head back into the classroom, it's getting kind of cold outside. Kurenai, Hayate, you needed my notes, right? I can start copying them and give them to you after school." He stood, taking his tray with him. "I'll see you around, Aika-chan."

"Ah! Goodbye, Iruka -!"

Iruka strode off, his dark eyes down and his broad shoulders tense.

"Oops," Kotetsu grimaced, looking a bit guilty. "Guess I hit a nerve."

"You're an idiot," Izumo said.

"We should probably head inside too," Kurenai said smoothly, glancing towards the one-sided argument that had broken out between a lively Gai and an unfazed Kakashi. "Izumo, Kotetsu, you go get Gai and I'll take your trays. Aika - Hayate and I may be a little late if we're getting notes from Iruka but you're more than welcome to wait for us so we can walk home together."

"I will," Aika beamed as the others stood from the table. "I'll see you after school!"

Izumo and Kotetsu hurried to pry Gai away from an inexpressive Kakashi and back towards the school building. As they passed, Gai shot Aika a grin and a thumbs up.

"You've chosen the right people to befriend, young lady!" he bellowed, his teeth unnaturally bright and white, glistening in the afternoon sun. "A friend of Gai is a friend who doesn't have to worry about anything! You just let me know if Kakashi - or anyone else from Lady Tsunade's class - is bothering you and I'll take care of it!"

"Uh - thank you?"

Izumo pushed Gai towards the school and Kotetsu followed close behind. Aika looked over and blushed hotly when she saw that the kids from Tsunade's class were staring at her, as was everyone else on the patio. She hurriedly finished her own meal and rushed inside the school building, trying to pretend she wasn't being studied by at least a dozen pairs of eyes.